Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
In the little town of Walton, Georgia, everybody knows your name--but no one knows your secret. At least that's what Lane Kent is counting on when she returns to her hometown with her five-year-old son. Dangerously depressed after the death of her husband, Lane is looking for hope. What she finds instead is a dead body.

Walton's newest deputy, Charlie Lynch, must uncover the truth behind the murder. But when that truth hits too close to home, Lane will have to decide if saving the life of another is worth the cost of revealing her darkest secret.

My Review:Living Lies is a Christian romantic suspense/mystery. The heroine literally stumbled across the body of a murdered girl, and the hero was the officer assigned to investigate and solve the murder. He's drawn to the compassion and kindness shown by the heroine to Vietnam vets and others that are struggling. She can relate to them because she's struggled her whole life with depression and anxiety, plus she still mourned her husband's death and carried guilt about it.

The characters acted realistically to events and came across as real people with genuine struggles. The suspense came from a shady character who kept lurking about the heroine's business and then the threat of another murder at the end.

Since the heroine felt like she was made broken due to her depression, she struggled to accept that God loved and cared about her. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd highly recommend this exciting novel.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
The year of 1899 is drawing to a close. Frank and Sarah Malloy are getting ready to celebrate the New Year at Trinity Church when they notice Mr. Pritchard, a relative of their neighbor's behaving oddly and annoying the other revelers. Frank tries to convince Pritchard to return home with them, but the man refuses and Frank loses him in the crowd. The next morning Sarah and Frank are horrified to learn Pritchard was murdered sometime in the night, his body left on Trinity Place, the side street near the church.

The police aren't too interested in the murder, and the family are concerned that the circumstances of the death will reflect badly on Pritchard's reputation. To protect the family from scandal, Nelson asks Frank to investigate. Frank and Sarah delve into Pritchard's past and realize there may have been a deadly side to the dawning of the new century.

My Review:Murder on Trinity Place is a historical mystery set in New York City in 1899 (around New Years) into 1900. This is the 22nd book in the series. You don't need to read the previous books to understand this one, and this one didn't spoil the whodunit of the previous mysteries.

This was a clue-based puzzle mystery. Frank and Gino did most of the investigating, though Sarah came across some information as well. They asked good questions and followed up clues until they all fit together. While I correctly chose whodunit about halfway through, there were still other viable suspects and I didn't feel certain until closer to the end.

Interesting historical details were woven into the story. The main characters were nice, engaging people and had realistic reactions to events. There were no sex scenes or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting historical mystery.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Anthea knows the truth about horses. They're not carriers of deadly disease like everyone in their kingdom thinks; they're majestic creatures who share their thoughts and feelings with her through The Way. Anthea has convinced the king of this, but at a cost--he demands that horses and riders with The Way do his bidding.

But when a deadly plague breaks out, the people believe that horses are the cause. As more fall ill, it's up to Anthea and her friends to transport medicine, all while keeping out of reach from Anthea's wicked mother.

My Review:The Queen's Secret is a tween fantasy novel involving horses. This novel is the 2nd in the series, but you don't need to read the first book to understand this one as this book referred back to and described the main events in the previous book. This second book ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, though, with no one in immediate danger but like this was the first half of a longer book.

The main characters acted realistically and were engaging. Suspense came from a plague breaking out and the riders trying to help while being blamed for it. The world-building gave the story a unique feel--cars, trains, and warships, but also horses and gift that allows people to communicate with horses. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd highly recommend this enjoyable fantasy adventure.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Spanning over 200 years of history in the British Isles, nine inspiring romance stories take readers through English gardens, around London ballrooms, and within Scottish castles. Follow along as each of the brides-to-be encounter high drama and epic romance on the way to the altar. Will they survive with their faith intact?

Woman of Valor by Jill Stengl
England 1631 - Helen has come to Marston Hall to care for three neglected children and a household in disarray. The gardener admires her inner beauty.

A Duplicitous Façade by Tamela Hancock Murray
England 1812 - In obedience to her father, Melodia agrees to marry a man she has never met. But after a masquerade ball, Melodia suspects she has more enemies than friends.

Love’s Unmasking by Bonnie Blythe
England 1814 - Matthew is certain a godly girl does not exist among London’s money-grubbing debutantes. He imitates a fop at society functions to repel them, but his own ruse traps him in an engagement.

A Treasure Worth Keeping by Kelly Eileen Hake
England 1832 - Paige is thrilled to hear her father has been hired to restore one of the country’s largest collections of antique volumes—until she learns the earl is hosting a house party during their stay.

Apple of His Eye by Gail Gaymer Martin
England 1851 - Sarah is spoiled, independent young woman, which leads her to force her attentions on the interesting new gardener at the family manor. He comes to admire her.

Moonlight Masquerade by Pamela Griffin
England 1865 - Letitia, usually the unassuming lady’s companion to her cousin, attends a country party as her equal. They're robbed by highwaymen along the way, and she recognizes their leader as the arrogant noble holding the ball! Or maybe the kind footman?

Fayre Rose by Tamela Hancock Murray
Scotland 1358 – Fayre was brought to Kennerith Castle to tend the duke’s rose garden in payment for her father’s taxes. When the Laird Kenneth falls ill with plague, only Fayre is brave enough to play nursemaid.

Fresh Highland Air by Jill Stengl
Scotland 1748 – When Hermione’s stepfather takes over Kennerith Castle, he retains Allan for Hermione’s bodyguard. She is determined to think the worst of Allan, until someone is out to get rid of him and the true heir of the castle comes into question.

English Tea and Bagpipes by Pamela Griffin
Scotland, 1822 - Fiona races after her eloping sister because she's marrying an English noble, the past enemy of her Highland family. The man's brother is also in pursuit, and Fiona learns to overcome her prejudice.

My Review:The British Brides Collection is a collection of nine short Christian romance stories set in England and Scotland between 1631 and 1865. Many of the stories focused on the character's desire for a Christian spouse and their growing faith as they faced difficult circumstances. The stories also had the romantic couple come to appreciate the character of their partner as much as their looks. The historical details were mainly just creating a setting backdrop for the story. The Scottish stories all occurred at a specific castle with unusual rosebushes. The English stories often included a certain masquerade mask with a legend of true love found by those who wore it. Overall, the characters were engaging and acted realistically. I didn't like how the spoiled girl in "Apple of His Eye" initially forced her attentions on the gardener, but I liked the other stories a lot. I always enjoy the stories by Jill Stengl, so I was happy that there were two in this collection. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this historical romance collection.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Presiding over the trial of a powerful drug cartel member, Judge Aubrey Madison finds her life threatened, and Texas Ranger Sean McNair isn’t taking any chances. Protecting the widow and her twins comes naturally to Sean—maybe too naturally for a guy who’s convinced he shouldn’t have a family. But he can’t help wishing for a future with Aubrey…if he can keep her alive.

My Review:Lone Star Standoff is a romantic suspense novel. The suspense came from repeated attempts to hurt the heroine and derail the trial. The hero protected her while also working to solve who is attacking her and who killed her husband and his brother two years ago. She doesn't want to get involved with a man in dangerous work like police work, but she falls in love with him over the weeks they spend together. He had no intention of getting married, but he falls in love with her. Except, I kinda got the feeling he fell in love with her cute, twin kids and she fell in love with how well he got along with them. Anyway, the hero and heroine got along and worked together well. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this exciting novel.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
The way Jazz Ramsey figures it, life is pretty good. She’s thirty-five years old and owns her own home in one of Cleveland’s most diverse, artsy, and interesting neighborhoods. She has a job she likes as an administrative assistant at an all-girls school, and a volunteer interest she’s passionate about—Jazz is a cadaver dog handler.

Jazz is putting Luther, a cadaver dog in training, through his paces at an abandoned building. When Luther signals a find, Jazz is stunned to see the body of a young woman and even more shocked when she realizes that beneath the tattoos and the piercings and all that pale makeup is a familiar face. The lead detective on the case is an old lover, and the murdered woman is an old student. Jazz finds herself obsessed with learning the truth.

My Review:The Scent of Murder is a cozy mystery which uses the fact that the heroine is a cadaver dog handler as the reason why she discovers bodies. The police have the investigation under control, but Jazz can't mentally move on after finding the body of a girl she knew. She decides to ask questions in an attempt to process what happened. While she does uncover some information, she largely asked the same things that the police did and didn't really add anything to the investigation until the very end. While asking questions, though, she managed to anger several people by basically accusing them of having affairs or murdering the girl.

This was a clue based mystery, and you can guess the identity of the murderer before the police or Jazz. The information about search and rescue and cadaver dog training was interesting, but it was not the main focus of the story. The characters didn't really engage me. Probably partly because Jazz thinks her relationship with the detective was "so good" (which we see no evidence of--it seems more antagonistic) yet she won't make him a priority in her life even when he's trying to.

There were no sex scenes. There was a fair amount of bad language of all sorts (including b**ch). Overall, I'd recommend this interesting mystery to dog lovers.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
When a game of Duplicate Bridge leads to a double murder, things are not as they seem. The two crimes appear identical, but were they carried out by the same hand? Inspector Hemingway has his work cut out for him, especially when the fiancee of the inspector's young friend Timothy Kane becomes Hemingway's prime suspect.

My Review:Duplicate Death is a mystery set in England and originally published in 1951. It's the seventh book in a series, but it works as a stand-alone. It's a clue-based puzzle mystery. It wasn't too difficult to guess "whodunit" since there weren't many people who had an opportunity. The trouble was uncovering a motive strong enough for murder.

The first murder happened at 23% of the way in. Inspector Hemingway noticed important clues and kept asking good questions until the pieces all fell into place. The characters were interesting and had a sense of humor, so it was a fun read. There was no sex. There was a fair amount of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery.

If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

About Me

My name is Debbie. I'm a single female in my thirties. I have three book review blogs: one for well-written, clean fiction; one for nonfiction (memoirs, history, military, religion, and social issues); and a book club for Christian nonfiction.

My other review blogs

Why this blog?

I like to read, but it can be hard to find clean mainstream fiction anymore. Hopefully this blog will help others who have similar reading tastes to find clean novels to read.

In my reviews, I try to point out elements that I think readers may wish to know which might influence their decision to read a book. I'm not trying to convince people not to read a book as I'm fully aware that some things which bother me won't bother others at all. So if a book sounds fun to you, certainly give it a try!

Disclosure StatementI'm not paid to review books. I do receive free review copies from publishers, authors, etc., but I also review books I've bought or checked out of the library. I review all books by the same standard, no matter the source. My readers are assuming I am, and the publishers expect it.